Community architects asked to leave base

A COMMUNITY architecture and development project has been asked to leave its premises at The Lighthouse in Granton.

Art in Architecture, run by artists Ross McEwan and Shaeron Averbuch, was given notice to quit by the city council, which owns the building, and its property agent, Waterfront Edinburgh Limited (WEL).

The organisation is understood to have been in arrears with its rent.

However, Mr McEwan said he was due to pay off the arrears this week, and was angry that AiA had not been given the option to stay on and meet the higher rent in future.

He said: "They say they've got somebody else to take it over to give them more money, but they never gave us the chance. We were slightly in arrears that we are just about to pay off, but we weren't given the option to stay.

"We've got lots of community workshops planned for the next six months."

AiA is behind the Granton Sur Mer project to revitalise the waterfront, and also helped residents of the Flower Colonies in Slateford Road formulate their opposition to a housing development, which was denied permission last August.

It has been told to vacate the building by May 23.